Federico Valverde breaks silence after returning to Real Madrid | OneFootball

Although a significant majority of them is still away on vacation, some players who participated in the World Cup 2026 have already returned to Real Madrid to train in the preseason under the new coach Jose Mourinho. Arda Guler did so on Monday, and he was followed by Federico Valverde, who arrived at Valdebebas on Wednesday.

Incidentally, it was also his birthday, 22 July, when he returned to the Merengue club. After undergoing medical tests, he started training with the rest of the available first team players and the youngsters who have been called up by Mourinho.

As SPORT has reported, the Uruguayan midfielder also spoke to Real Madrid TV after his first training session. He expressed his eagerness to work with the Portuguese coach and learn from him:

“I’m looking forward to learning from him, listening to every piece of advice he gives me, and making the most of every training session. I’ll try to grow both as a person and as a footballer. He’s a special person from whom I can learn many things.”

The Falcon was proud to have been selected as the first captain of the merengue team for the next season:

The midfielder highlighted some of the most notable captains in Real Madrid history, from which he has directly learned and whom he would be looking to emulate with this new responsibility:

“I learned a lot from all the captains I’ve had here. Dani Carvajal, Sergio Ramos, Toni Kroos, Luka Modrić and Lucas Vázquez always helped me tremendously. Now it’s my turn to give something back and help my teammates as well.”

Going forward, he was looking to help Los Blancos get back to winning ways from the next season:

“Not only me, but the entire team wants to start winning trophies again. That is our goal, and we hope the Real Madrid fans can enjoy a season full of success and feel proud of us.”

The last two seasons have not gone very well for Federico Valverde. To start with, he was unable to help Real Madrid to any major piece of silverware, and his performances with Uruguay in the World Cup were also quite underwhelming as the South American team was eliminated from the group stage.

Meanwhile, he also remained involved in several controversies, both with his club and his national teams. Hopefully, the midfielder will turn a new page in his career this summer, and get back to his best level with the new coach, Jose Mourinho.